The network broadcasts audiovisual transmissions more commonly referred to as “events” and data intended for referencing them. A service is a series of events broadcast in a specified stream. The reference data are for example defined in the DVB-SI specifications (“Digital Video Broadcast—specification for Service Information”) EN 300 468 V1.3.1 (published by the ETSI). They take the form of tables and of descriptors which describe the objects transmitted on the broadcasting network. The tables contain references related to the events broadcast such as: the title, the times of broadcast, the broadcasting channel, a brief summary, etc. Typically, the streams in accordance with the DVB-SI standard contain the following tables: NIT, SDT, EIT and possibly BAT. The NIT table defines the general structure of the network and indicates the list of transport streams and services broadcast. The SDT table gives additional information relating to the services, for example the unencrypted name of a service. The EIT table indicates a list of events for each service. It makes it possible in particular to indicate the event currently being broadcast. For its part, the BAT table clusters together several services into a bouquet of services which can be output by several broadcasting networks. The standard also specifies so-called proprietor fields, which the broadcasters can use for a specific use, to add non-standardized supplementary information to that already specified.
Among other things, the transmitter broadcasts advertising sequences. The topics of these sequences vary greatly, for example: sport, cars, maintenance products, domestic electrical, songs, etc. An advertising interlude comprises one or more advertising sequences which are not generally of the same topic. The user is ordinarily interested in a few topics but not all. He can enter into his decoder a profile defined by a number of preferred topics. The decoder possesses a filter which authorizes the displaying of the events whose topic corresponds to the profile of the user. However, if the advertising sequence is filtered, the television screen is black, this being unpleasant for the user.
The invention aims to provide the user, at the moment scheduled by the transmitter, with advertising sequences which possess a certain characteristic.